No, not that kind... I need Time In The Saddle on my bike. No matter your level of fitness, it takes a while to get your rear-end accustomed to a bike seat. I haven't been riding all that much lately due to the heat and my ongoing problems with occasional dizziness. That means any ride longer than a few miles leaves me with a painfully sore and numb butt. Trying to push through the sensation doesn't work; it just leaves me absolutely desperate to get off the bike and give my cheeks a rest.
The only way to deal with numb butt syndrome is TITS. Ride often, gradually increasing the time in the saddle until you can handle longer and longer rides. And, despite the heat that will be with us for another couple of months, I am planning to start riding my bike a whole lot more soon. This weekend, we ordered an electric assist for my Xtracycle. It took a chunk out of our house fund, but the savings in gas will pay for it over time.
I know some people may disagree with our decision. They will say I should quit driving and just ride the bike no matter what. Well, life isn't that black and white, and my life is filled with shades of gray. One reason I have not been riding as much lately is because I'm out-of-shape and overweight. Obviously, biking more will help that situation, but I can't go from zero to sixty overnight. I am no spring chicken, either; more like a late summer (maybe even fall) hen! The ongoing issues with the dizziness have really put a hamper on my efforts to get back to exercising for months. Temperatures over 100 degrees are also seriously unpleasant for exercising outside, as well as potentially dangerous due to dehydration and heat exhaustion.
The electric assist will help me ride more and that is better than just driving and giving up on the bike altogether. It will allow me to take the bike for multiple errands midday even when it is scorching outside. It will help me make it on my bike to my twice weekly self-defense classes that are over 10 miles away, something I couldn't even consider doing without the assist right now. It will help me get in shape while getting out of the car now.
But(t), I still need to get my rear-end ready for the increased time on the bike. I'll be heading out regularly in the cooler early morning hours peddling around town and doing any errands at the businesses that are open early. By the time my new kit arrives, I hope to hang up the car keys and hop on my bike every time I need to go somewhere.
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Have you seen some of the different type saddles that you can buy for your bike that try to correct that numb butt problem? I've got my eye on a couple since I don't ride much to severe numb butt issues (ha ha.) The saddles basically split the weight load to the seat bones instead of a central concentration. Some of them are wider, too so that balance on the seat is supported. I looked at websites on the net under bicycle saddles, female or wide saddle, or alternative.
ReplyDeleteYep. I've got a nice ergonomic saddle. Even with the best saddle, though, you still have to get accustomed to it.
ReplyDeleteThere's definitely a level of balance to be achieved. I've tried to go all-bike, but in the end, there really are some places that it's better to drive and I just save up all those driving errands for the once-in-awhile I decide to take the car out. The rest of the time I bike. Seriously, perfection is boring. Balance is far more healthy anyway.
ReplyDeleteFor our long trip, I bought padded shorts which I can't recommend enough. It helped with the butt pain tremendously. Although now I can ride about 40 miles w/o the shorts.
ReplyDeleteI thought you used to ride when walking Pollie and Angel? Did you stop because of vertigo? That one mile alone if done consistently should help a lot in strength building.
Heather - balance is good. I wish I had some. ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I agree that not only is perfection boring, it really annoys the heck out of all the rest of us!
Beany - no biking with Polie yet. He sometimes lunges at bikes, frequently pulls, and would be dangerous to bike with right now. We hope after training that it will be a possibility.
Yes, I did bike with Angel some but not since it got hot in May. (The heat came early.) I've been very inconsistent with the biking, and got derailed a month or so ago when I fell off the bike at, oh, about 5 miles an hour. Scraped my knee up pretty bad and bruised myself in a painful place, which didn't allow biking for a couple weeks.
I know, I'm a bike loser. *hanging head in shame*
You're not a bike loser Chile!
ReplyDeleteYou know this as well as I do, any sort of physical activity is good: walk, stretch (yoga, pilates), krav maga, biking. I mean how do you expect to have the strength to wring your clothes after washing or open a jar of pickled melons if you don't do anything? :)
Don't we all. I've found that balance is something we never really quite achieve though. It's a matter of constantly being vigilant. Lots of work, but worth it. Plus, I think it's WAY harder when you live your life more publicly (say as a blogger...) I constantly am catching myself going to extremes.
ReplyDeleteAlong with what Heather said, I think there is alot of subtle pressures from bloggers that I've experienced (and only realized while I was on the road). I didn't know to consider my own limitations and live and based goals on those limitations. I've become a lot better, although I suspect I'm now starting to become to cause of bicycling pressure to everyone who comes in contact with me either online of off.
ReplyDeleteBeany - I feel pressure off-line too. Because I do lots of talks and try to encourage the community to "go local." I find it easy to fall into a mindset of "I have to eat 100% local to prove to others that it's possible." Sure. That was good for the one year experiment, and it is possible, but I think balance if far healthier. Mostly local is good enough. Now to get the 2 sides of my brain on the same wavelength...
ReplyDeleteYou two make some good points. I call that pressure the "greener than thou" syndrome. I try to ignore it and just post about what works for me personally, but I debated (very briefly) about posting about the electric assist because I worried about criticism. Ultimately, I'm doing what I can, which is far better than simply choosing to do nothing.
ReplyDeleteI have an extra wide gel seat. It's designed for women and their wider pelvis. I never get numb butt and I'm even older and more out of shape. This seat was for a mountain bike, not a touring or a town bike or anything like that. I think it would be well suited to an extracycle.
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with tools to help you on your way to a goal.
ReplyDeleteMy father is a huge biker... he advocates standing up (on the bike pedals) every 15 minute for 30 seconds or so to help blood flow to the nether regions. It really does help.... you can feel the blood rushing back in!
Wide saddles arn't the best... they actually make everything "number". My husband is jonesing for a nice saddle that lets him "hang" a little free-er... if he was willing to bike to work, I'd consider it. (In his defense, it is 15 miles away up a busy freeway).
Jennifer - I wonder if that's wny I've never had trouble with pain on numbness when riding. It bothers my hubby to no end, but I notice that I stand up far more often than he does...
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't worry about what others think about you buying a power assist for your bike- pennies a day to charge, gives you a boost WTF peoples? sounds like a good deal to me. Maybe you could even buy a solar panel to charge it with. But there I go spending your $$$ for you.
ReplyDeleteTameson - I tried an extra wide gel seat back when I first got my bike. It irritated my sciatic nerve on one leg for some weird reason.
ReplyDeleteJennifer - good idea. I'll stand up more often, and not just for hills. My fave saddle is a Specialized Body Geometry one with a cut-away in the middle. Far more comfortable. That style is also better for guys as pressure on long rides is painful, so I hear.
Rob - that's the long range plan.
I'm afraid its now 30 years since I seriously rode a bike (university). I can do it but tend to break things (me mostly) so I figure I'll just cut down driving heaps and that will have to do.
ReplyDeleteNobody is perfect :) I've never noticed green pressure possibly because I've always lived this way anyhow. My mother and grandmother automatically did green because it was logical (and cheaper) at the time) so I merely added a few bits.
viv in nz
As someone who is just beginning to 'live green' and is waaaay behind the rest of you, I keep reminding myself 'a step in the right direction is a step in the right direction.' Using your bike more, with or without an assist, is definitely a step in the right direction.
ReplyDelete'life isn't black or white' -- yuuuuup. Always good to have that reminder. Your class is over 10 miles away and you BIKE there?! Well, I give up. I'm now very impressed, and nowhere near *that* level of comfort on a bike.
ReplyDeleteViv - we each do what we can do.
ReplyDeleteGaia's Daughter - constant forward progress!
Stephanie - no, I don't bike there because it is more than 10 miles away. I WILL bike there with the assist, though.
Oh man, I'm too tired to read blogs I guess. That makes much more sense.
ReplyDeleteI thought you may be interested in reading about Rachel. She is car free and bikes and walks everywhere in Tucson...maybe she has tips or could be a bike buddy?
ReplyDelete